Method and system for enabling the issuance of biometrically secured online credit or other online payment transactions without tokens

• US 20030046237A1
• Filed: 10/24/2002
• Published: 03/06/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 05/09/2000
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Touchcredit Financial Services Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Touchcredit Financial Services Incorporated
• Inventors: Uberti, James
• Application Number:
  US10/280,732
• Publication Number:
  US 20030046237A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/44
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/02 involving a neutral party, e.g. certification authority, notary or trusted third party [TTP]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/023 the neutral party being a clearing house
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/04 Payment circuits
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/12 specially adapted for electronic shopping systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/40 Authorisation, e.g. identification of payer or payee, verification of customer or shop credentials; Review and approval of payers, e.g. check credit lines or negative lists
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/4014 Identity check for transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/02 Banking, e.g. interest calculation or account maintenance credit or loans G06Q40/03
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/37 using biometric data, e.g. fingerprints, iris scans or voice recognition

Abstract

A method and apparatus for issuance of biometrically secured online credit or other payment transactions without tokens or cards. A buyer supplies a registration biometric sample which is used to generate a registration biometric template. The registration biometric template is stored and used to authenticate financial transactions. As part of a registration process, a buyer may be verified using a series of questions generated from public and non-public information to which the buyer knows the answer but an impersonator may not. In subsequent financial transactions, the buyer supplies a verification biometric sample used to generate a verification biometric template. The verification and registration biometric templates are compared to determine if a requested financial transaction should be authorized. The kinds of biometric samples used may be keystroke-scans, face-scans, voice-scans, or fingerprint-scans. The comparison process between the verification biometric template and registration biometric template may be modified to reflect the value of a requested financial transaction. In addition, the verification biometric templates may include a time stamp to preclude reuse of a previously submitted biometric template and a system identifier to preclude submission of biometric templates from unauthorized systems.

Claims

1. A method of authorizing a financial transaction for a buyer over a computer network, comprising:

receiving a verification biometric sample by a client from the buyer;

generating a verification biometric template using the verification biometric sample by the client;

transmitting the verification biometric template by the client to a server through the computer network;

generating a match score between the verification biometric template and an enrollment biometric template by the server; and

authorizing the financial transaction by the server if the match score exceeds a threshold score.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a transaction value by the client from the buyer;

transmitting the transaction value by the client to the server through the computer network; and

generating the threshold score by the server using the transaction value.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising associating the verification biometric template with a time by the server.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein authorizing the financial transaction further includes using the time associated with the verification biometric template.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising associating a system identifier with the verification biometric template by the client.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein authorizing the financial transaction further includes using the system identifier associated with the verification biometric template.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising transmitting a credit account identifier by the server to the client through the computer network upon authorizing the financial transaction.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein the biometric sample is selected from the group consisting of a facial-scan, a finger-scan, a hand-scan, an iris-scan, a keystroke-scan, a signature-scan, a voice-scan, a DNA-scan and a retina-scan.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein the client is hosted by a device selected from the group consisting of a laptop computer, a desktop computer, a mobile telephone, and a personal digital assistant.

10. A method of opening a biometrically protected credit account by an applicant for use in a payment system over a computer network, comprising:

receiving by a server an applicant identifier from a client through the computer network;

generating a set of questions by the server using the applicant identifier;

transmitting the set of questions by the server to the client through the computer network;

receiving a set of answers corresponding to the set of questions by the server from the client through the computer network; and

authorizing the credit account by the server if the set of answers are correct with respect to the questions.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

receiving a biometric sample by the client from the applicant;

generating a biometric template by the client using the biometric sample; and

transmitting the biometric template by the client to the server through the computer network.

12. The method of claim 11 wherein the biometric sample is selected from the group consisting of a facial-scan, a finger-scan, a hand-scan, an iris-scan, a keystroke-scan, a signature-scan, a voice-scan, a DNA-scan and a retina-scan.

13. The method of claim 10 wherein the client is hosted by a device selected from the group consisting of a laptop computer, a desktop computer, a mobile telephone, and a personal digital assistant.

14. An apparatus for authorizing a financial transaction for a buyer over a computer network, comprising:

means for receiving a verification biometric sample by a client from the buyer;

means for generating a verification biometric template using the verification biometric sample by the client;

means for transmitting the verification biometric template by the client to a server through the computer network;

means for generating a match score between the verification biometric template and an enrollment biometric template by the server; and

means for authorizing the financial transaction by the server if the match score exceeds a threshold score.

15. The apparatus of claim 14, further comprising:

means for receiving a transaction value by the client from the buyer;

means for transmitting the transaction value by the client to the server through the computer network; and

means for generating the threshold score by the server using the transaction value.

16. The apparatus of claim 14, further comprising associating a time with the verification biometric template by the server.

17. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the means for authorizing the financial transaction further includes using the time associated with the verification biometric template.

18. The apparatus of claim 14, further comprising means for associating a system identifier with the verification biometric template by the client.

19. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the means for authorizing the financial transaction further includes using the system identifier associated with the verification biometric template.

20. The apparatus of claim 14, further comprising means for transmitting a credit account identifier by the server to the client through the computer network upon authorizing the financial transaction.

21. The apparatus of claim 14 wherein the biometric sample is selected from the group consisting of a facial-scan, a finger-scan, a hand-scan, an iris-scan, a keystroke-scan, a signature-scan, a voice-scan, a DNA-scan and a retina-scan.

22. The apparatus of claim 14 wherein the client is hosted by a device selected from the group consisting of a laptop computer, a desktop computer, a mobile telephone, and a personal digital assistant.

23. An apparatus for opening a credit account by an applicant for use in a biometric payment system over a computer network, comprising:

means for receiving by a server an applicant identifier from a client through the computer network;

means for generating a set of questions by the server using the applicant identifier;

means for transmitting the set of questions by the server to the client through the computer network;

means for receiving a set of answers corresponding to the set of questions by the server from the client through the computer network; and

means for authorizing the credit account by the server if the set of answers are correct with respect to the questions.

24. The apparatus of claim 23, further comprising:

means for receiving a biometric sample by the client from the applicant;

means for generating a biometric template by the client using the biometric sample; and

means for transmitting the biometric template by the client to the server through the computer network.

25. The apparatus of claim 24 wherein the biometric sample is selected from the group consisting of a facial-scan, a finger-scan, a hand-scan, an iris-scan, a keystroke-scan, a signature-scan, a voice-scan, a DNA-scan and a retina-scan.

26. The apparatus of claim 23 wherein the client is hosted by a device selected from the group consisting of a laptop computer, a desktop computer, a mobile telephone, and a personal digital assistant.

27. A user interface for a biometric shopping assistant, comprising:

a selectable icon for invoking the biometric shopping assistant;

a biometric sample collection screen for capturing a biometric sample from a buyer by the biometric shopping assistant; and

a transaction information screen for display of buyer account information by the biometric shopping assistant.

28. The user interface of claim 27, wherein the biometric sample collection screen includes a prompt area for display of a prompt by the biometric shopping assistant.

29. The user interface of claim 27, wherein the biometric sample collection screen includes selectable transaction values.

30. A method of opening a biometrically protected credit account by an applicant for use in a payment system over a computer network, comprising:

receiving by a server applicant information from a client through the computer network;

generating a background check of the applicant by the server using the applicant information; and

performing the following if the server verifies the identity of the applicant using the applicant information and the background check;

authorizing the credit account by the server;

receiving a biometric sample by the client from the applicant;

generating a biometric template by the client using the biometric sample; and

transmitting the biometric template by the client to the server through the computer network.

31. The method of claim 30 wherein the biometric sample is selected from the group consisting of a facial-scan, a finger-scan, a hand-scan, an iris-scan, a keystroke-scan, a signature-scan, a voice-scan, a DNA-scan and a retina-scan.

32. An apparatus for opening a biometrically protected credit account by an applicant for use in a payment system over a computer network, comprising:

means for receiving applicant information from a client through the computer network;

means for generating a background check of the applicant using the applicant information; and

means for authorizing the credit account if the identity of the applicant is verified using the applicant information and the background check; and

means for receiving a biometric template generated by the client using a biometric sample collected from the applicant.

33. The apparatus of claim 32 wherein the biometric sample is selected from the group consisting of a facial-scan, a finger-scan, a hand-scan, an iris-scan, a keystroke-scan, a signature-scan, a voice-scan, a DNA-scan and a retina-scan.